Have you ever had a feeling of being watched?
I currently have that feeling after this past Friday night.
Friday
Just as most Friday afternoons would start, I collected my son from the crèche after collecting my wife from work. The relaxed weekend feeling setting in.
As we decided that we would have a Braai, (Barbecue), we went to the butcher shop to buy some marinated ribs, lamb sausage and a bacon and cheese 3 foot sausage. After which we went to the local grocery store to top up essentials like bread and milk and some chips.
Everything was going according to plan, I relaxed outside in the afternoon sun while my wood fire turned into coals ready to braai. I love the smell of burning wood, the feel of a cold beer in my hand.
The braai was very fun as my 3 year old helped me to cook the meat, helpful as always. After our meal we watched a movie and went to bed. Not expecting a thing as this was our usual routine, what could go wrong?
02:00 AM
In the middle of a nice deep sleep, I was awoken by a loud banging on my front door. I flew out of bed, already angry. Who in their right mind would be banging on my front door at 02:00 in the morning!!! The banging on the door, which started out as knocking was not helping my mood.
As we live I a complex, with 80 living units I was sure it was someone that had trouble with their access card to the complex. But there is a time and place for everything I thought to myself.
The Door
Upon reaching the door, I furiously turned the key, pushed the leaver of the door down and flung the door open, starting with a confident “WHAT THE FU….” Mid-sentence I stopped and froze.
The disbelief of seeing 7 heavily armed police officers, R5 assault rifles and all, in front of my door. Shock does not even a start to explain what I felt at that moment.
At a loss for words I asked what this is about. On which the front police officer replied that they are my visitors. Again I requested an answer on what this is about. Like I was speaking to a deaf man the police officer stood there with a smirk only but no reply. They demanded that I grant them access to my home. Keeping in mind that I live in South Africa, I firstly requested their identification documents as there is a wave of criminals dressing like police to gain access to you residence to rob you and much worse.
You said I was a suspected WHAT….
After ensuring that these police officers were the real police, I granted them access into my home as I have never had a run in with the police and want to give my co-operation if it is needed.
As all 7 policemen entered the premises I was informed that there was a tip off that I am a suspected drug dealer and that they have come to raid my house. I had to pinch myself, believing that this was only a bad dream and I just had to wake up. All of the above happened within a few minutes so I was also still in the process of waking up and in shock. I could absolutely not believe my ears.. Repeatedly they asked me and my wife what I did for a living. Roaming through the house in my presence. Looking under clothes in between my shoes, EVERYWHERE was searched. At this stage I was blank. Between the mix of disbelief and shock my brain went into auto-pilot mode. Walking through my family home with police looking to find something that is not there.
My poor wife was shaking and trembling in fear and disbelief of all the happenings around us. She is not the kind of person that handles that kind of stress very well. Up and down through the house, even the garden. My home, My place of safety has been violated.
03:40
After asking the same questions a hundred times and checking every nook and cranny in, what was once my place of safety and relaxation, the police left as suddenly as they came. I sat on the couch in disbelief, still, thinking about what had just happened.
My nerves were wrecked, feeling anxious and the great confusion of what had happened.
I made a cup of very strong coffee and I must have had 4 cigarettes one after the other, trying to piece together what had led to this raid. Around 04:30 I finally got back to bed. Exhausted and still confused and stressed as hell. Didn’t manage to sleep really.
The butterfly effect
After the ordeal everything feels different around me. My house does not feel like a home anymore, every time there is a knock on the door this anxious feeling spreads over me with the thought of what if this was to happen again.
Even while driving I have to make sure no one is following me, as this paranoid feeling of being watched does not leave my back.
Monday morning first thing I’ll be off to the police station to get clarification on all the details to be able to put my mind to rest. You have no idea how un-settling an ordeal like this can be.
As soon as I find out what the meaning of everything was, I will do a follow up post.
Please wish me luck and let’s hope this gets sorted out before something like this happens again.
Thank you for reading!
From a nervous, anxious @rslabbert
Sorry to hear of your rude awakening/interaction.
Its sad when such things happen, and unfortunately its not just a South Africa situation. It happens all the time here in the States, usually with a home owner being killed.
Glad to hear your and yours made it through ok.
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Here in South Africa there is a big violence and even rape issue that comes to light quite a lot. I do feel lucky that there was no harm done, I guess keeping it cool and keeping your mindset right does play a role in high stress situations.
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Definately.
Ive been reading about the violence against South African farmers. Very scary.
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Yes. That is a massive issue. And nothing is being done.most of these attackers use military style planning and execution of the attacks. The brutality is animalistic... I hope something can change in our country.
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Not sure if you saw it, but heres a link
https://steemit.com/news/@stefan.molyneux/white-farmers-slaughtered-in-south-africa-or-lauren-southern-and-stefan-molyneux
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I would really like to hear what the follow up is on this post.
Surely the police should have an explanation for their behavior? They are civil servants. If they traumatize your family without proof or apology or reason then it is plain rude and unjust.
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Upvoted by Proudly South African Steemians(@psas). You can follow us for more truely South African content.
If you are from South Africa, you are more than welcome to join us on Discord. https://discord.gg/xRznW7S
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Wow. That's hectic. And it's not like you can deny them entry. I don't know how I would have reacted in the same situation.
The closest I ever came to this was when I was pulled over at a roadblock once and informed that I was driving a stolen vehicle. Turns out they were using this new technology that auto read the number plate and searched on the stolen vehicle database. Thing is, the machine read the number plate wrong and replace one of the letters.
I think if I multiply my feeling that day by 100 I might come close to what you must have felt when they violated your privacy.
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Thank you. Yes, even today still there is this lingering uncertainty and worry about if it might happen again. I'm trying to put my mind to rest, stressing about it does not increase or decrease the chance of it happening again. Thanks for your great comment
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Well shit... Seriously not cool. Strongs man!
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Yes, it was probably the 4th worst situation I have ever been in. But my wife is quite rattled by the event.
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Did you know you can win SBD by participating in "FIVE WORD STORIES" challenge?!
You can read about the challenge HERE and participate by submitting your story in the comments section of the challenge entries which you can find HERE. You will have the chance to win SBD in this challenge.
I'd be happy to see you around my friend!
NOTE: Your participation is through commenting on the challenge photos I post, not posting photos
Happy Steeming!
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Sorry man, I do not appreciate your own promotion as a comment in my post. That is not quite fair. Please do not post any links or advertisements in my future posts. Thanks. @b2travel .
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